June 12/06 10:57 am - Commerce Bank Liberty Classic

With the first two legs of the Commerce Bank Triple Crown of Cycling in the books, the Pro/Elite women faced the final and most prestigious race of the three events in the series, the Commerce Bank Liberty Classic.

Teutenberg came into the race as an overwhelming favorite but not without very real threats from a number of strong riders and teams. Jumping out of the start sheet as potential challengers were World Champion Regina Schleicher (Nuernberger-Versicherung), World Cup Winner Rochelle Gillmore (Advil-Champstick), local favorite Laura Van Gilder (Team Lipton) and perennial threat Tina Pic (Colavita-Cooking Light).

After two fast and relatively short criterium races in Lancaster and Reading, the Pro/Elite women would be tested by a challenging four lap 57.6 mile race that would see them tackle the same 14 mile loop as the Pro men including the brutal Manayunk Wall climb. This would surely give teams looking to send their climbers off the front ample opportunities.

The dominating T-Mobile team was intent on duplicating the same winning formula as last year for their team leader Teutenberg and spent the majority of the race pulling back any dangerous moves that went up the road. As the laps ticked by and the weaker riders fell back on the hilly circuit, an elite group of 50 riders were lead into the final mile of racing by a flying T-Moble lead out. Tucked safely in behind was Teutenberg, waiting to pounce in the final meters.

The World Champion Schleicher who had been quiet all day finally showed her cards and with a final powerful surge got the best of last yearÃ¢â‚¬Å¡s winner Teutenberg. Behind the two German champions in third was the ever present Tina Pic who has been ruled the domestic racing scene for years.

The VisitPA.com Tour de Wall competition that goes to the strongest woman on the steep Manayunk Wall went to climbing specialist Annette Beutler (AaronÃ¢â‚¬Å¡s). The best young rider Miji Award went to rising star Kimberly Geist (Victory Brewing). Finally, Teutenburg proved herself as the most consistent rider across the three race series by taking the prestigious Commerce Bank Triple Crown of Cycling competition.